BYD Sealion 5 scored three stars in tougher ANCAP testing as the M9 took five

Three stars for the Sealion 5

The BYD Sealion 5 plug-in hybrid mid-size SUV has been awarded a three-star ANCAP Safety rating under the organisation's tougher 2026–2028 testing criteria, making it the first BYD model assessed in Australia to fall short of five stars. CarExpert reported the result on September 29, 2026, noting the rating applies to both the Essential and Premium grades sold locally, while GoAuto's September 30 report added that the brand's new M9 people mover achieved the maximum five stars in the same round of assessments. ¹²

Both outlets describe the three-star outcome as the end of an unbroken run: every other BYD tested by ANCAP, from the entry-level Atto 1 hatchback to the larger SUVs, has received a five-star rating. CarExpert noted the Sealion 5, launched in Australia in 2025, is now the only BYD in local showrooms tested by ANCAP without a full five-star result. ¹²

The Sealion 5 was among the first vehicles assessed under the new protocol, which ANCAP formulated in partnership with its European affiliate Euro NCAP, according to CarExpert. The organisation's chief executive, Carla Hoorweg, said the 2026–2028 requirements continue to encourage balanced safety performance across all four stages of assessment, "with the Sealion 5 not able to match the safety offering of its stablemate." ²¹

Where the Sealion 5 fell down

Occupant protection in the physical crash tests was respectable, with adult and child occupants reasonably well protected, according to GoAuto's account of the ANCAP results. However, the newer Virtual and Sled test assessments showed protection eased off for larger occupants and under higher-severity conditions. ¹³

The decisive shortcomings came in crash avoidance. ANCAP's report, as cited by CarExpert, scored the Sealion 5 at just 51 per cent for Crash Avoidance and 48 per cent for Safe Driving. The standout failure was the emergency lane-keeping system, which did not intervene at all in ANCAP's road-edge test scenarios — a capability ANCAP has been encouraging in its ratings since 2018. ²¹³

ANCAP was blunt about why that matters. Its report stated that unintended lane departures account for 42 per cent of fatal crashes and 55 per cent of fatalities in light-vehicle crashes on Australian roads, figures quoted by both CarExpert and Gay Car Boys in their coverage. ²³

The Sealion 5 was also marked down for missing features that are already standard on other current BYD models, according to the ANCAP findings reported by GoAuto and Gay Car Boys: child presence detection (assessed since 2023), a seatbelt misuse alert, stature classification that tailors restraint response to occupant size, and low-speed pedal-misapplication protection that cuts power if the accelerator is pressed with a pedestrian nearby. ¹³²

Post-crash equipment was a relative bright spot, though not enough to lift the overall rating. GoAuto reported the Sealion 5 offers battery thermal management and multi-collision braking, but lacks automatic eCall functionality to alert emergency services after a serious collision — a gap CarExpert also flagged. ¹²

ANCAP picked the car itself

BYD did not put the Sealion 5 forward for testing. CarExpert reported that BYD told it in 2025 the company had nominated the larger Sealion 8 PHEV for assessment under the outgoing 2023–2025 protocol — a test it passed with five stars — and withdrew previous plans to have the Sealion 5 tested, leaving the model unrated. ANCAP told CarExpert earlier in 2026 that the Sealion 5 was high on a list of models it wanted to evaluate. ²¹

ANCAP confirmed it selected the Sealion 5 independently. "BYD continues to be proactive in bringing forward models for ANCAP testing," chief executive Carla Hoorweg said in a statement quoted by CarExpert. "However, the Sealion 5 was a model the brand hadn't actively pursued for testing and was subsequently selected by ANCAP to ensure consumers have a clear picture of its safety performance." GoAuto and Gay Car Boys carried the same quote. ²¹³

In response, BYD Australia told CarExpert: "The Sealion 5 is a safe vehicle that complies with all Australian Design Rules and regulatory safety standards." The company added that ANCAP introduced an updated protocol in 2026 with strengthened criteria compared with the 2023–2025 protocol applicable when the Sealion 5 was introduced globally, and that "the current rating reflects this new standard, not any change in BYD's commitment to safety." ²¹

The M9 fared considerably better

BYD's M9, the brand's first Australian-market people mover and a seven-seat PHEV aimed at larger families and passenger-transport operators, achieved five stars under the same 2026–2028 criteria. ANCAP's scores, reported by CarExpert and GoAuto, included 89 per cent for Crash Protection, 78 per cent for Crash Avoidance and 75 per cent for Safe Driving. ¹²

The M9 comes standard with many of the features the new criteria encourage — stature classification, child presence detection and a driver distraction monitoring system — and all performed well in testing, according to Gay Car Boys' summary of the ANCAP results. GoAuto noted its AEB and lane-support systems also performed strongly. ³¹

Crash testing showed low injury risk across most scenarios, with good whiplash protection in the first and second rows but a marginal result for the third row, GoAuto reported. ANCAP did flag that several child restraints could not be correctly fitted to the left outboard third-row seating position despite a top-tether anchorage being provided there, a detail Gay Car Boys also carried. ¹³

The M9 capped its result with a perfect 100 per cent Post-Crash score, covering emergency information provision, battery voltage isolation, post-crash fire-risk management, accessible door releases from inside and outside the vehicle, and fitted eCall. The five-star rating currently applies to seven-seat variants only, GoAuto reported. ¹²

Context for segment shoppers

The Sealion 5 competes against mid-size PHEV SUVs including the Toyota RAV4 and Mitsubishi Outlander, as CarExpert noted. The current-generation RAV4, introduced in 2025, is itself currently unrated by ANCAP, though Toyota Australia told CarExpert it expects the RAV4 to be tested by the end of 2026 under the new protocols and is working towards a five-star result. ²¹

CarExpert's showroom data lists the Sealion 5 as a front-wheel-drive 1.5-litre PHEV with 156 kW, sized at 4738 mm long, 1860 mm wide and 1710 mm tall on a 2712 mm wheelbase, built in China. Its drive-away pricing — Sydney-based and inclusive of on-road charges, subject to change — spans $38,027 for the Essential to $42,147 for the Premium. ⁴

Hoorweg also pointed to BYD's broader market position, noting the brand has quickly risen to become Australia's second highest-selling brand since its arrival in 2022, as quoted by GoAuto. With several of the missing safety features already standard on other BYD models, GoAuto observed the three-star result may prompt Sealion 5 shoppers to ask why. ¹